List of attacks attributed to the LTTE

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The following is a list of chronological attacks attributed to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), commonly known as the Tamil Tigers.[1][2][3] The attacks include massacres, bombings, robberies, ethnic cleansing, military battles and assassinations of civilian and military targets. The LTTE is a separatist militant group that fought for a separate Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka between 1976 and 2009. The rebel group has been banned by 33 countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and the 27 member nations of the European Union.

In opposition to this list, there is also the List of attacks on civilians attributed to Sri Lankan government forces.

Notable and deadliest attacks*[edit]

Attack Date Location Death toll Sources
1990 massacre of Sri Lankan Police officers 11 June 1990 Eastern Province 600–774 Police officers [4][5]
Battle of Mullaitivu (1996) 18 July 1996 Northern Province 1,498 officers and soldiers KIA or MIA (including unknown number of surrendered per the military, 50 police and 80 civilians) [6][7][8][9][10]
1987 Eastern Province massacres 29 September 1987 – 8 October 1987 Eastern Province 200+ [11]
Kattankudy mosque massacre 3 August 1990 Kattankudy, Batticaloa District 147 [12]
Anuradhapura massacre 14 May 1985 Anuradhapura, Anuradhapura District 146 [13]
Habarana bus massacre 17 April 1987 Habarana, Anuradhapura District 127 [14]
October 1995 Eastern Sri Lanka massacres 16 October 1995 Eastern Province 120
Eravur massacre 11 August 1990 Eravur, Batticaloa District 116-173 [15][16]
Central Bus Station Bombing 21 April 1987 Pettah, Colombo, Colombo District 113 [17]
Palliyagodella massacre 15 October 1991 Palliyagodella, Polonnaruwa District 109 [14][18]
2006 Digampathana bombing 16 October 2006 Digampathaha, Matale District 99–103 soldiers [19][20]
Central Bank bombing 31 January 1996 Colombo, Colombo District 91 [21]
Alanchipothana massacre 29 April 1992 Alanchipothana, Polonnaruwa District 69 [22]
Kurukkalmadam massacre 13 July 1990 Kurukkalmadam, Batticaloa District 68-168 [23][24][25]
Kebithigollewa massacre 15 June 2006 Kebithigollewa, Anuradhapura District 66 [26]
Dehiwala train bombing (1996) 24 July 1996 Dehiwala, Colombo District 64 [27]
Kanthan Karunai massacre 30 March 1987 Jaffna, Jaffna District 63 [28]
Kent and Dollar Farm massacres 30 November 1984 Mullaitivu District 62 [29]
JOC bombing 21 June 1991 Flower Road, Colombo 60 [30]
Lionair Flight 602 29 September 1998 off the coast of Mannar District 55 [31]
Gonagala massacre 18 September 1999 Gonagala, Ampara District 54 [32]
Assassination of Gamini Dissanayake Ossie Abeyagoonasekera 24 October 1994 Thotalanga, Colombo 52 [33][34]
Mahakongaskada massacre 10 October 1988 Medawachchiya, Anuradhapura District 44 [35]
Kallarawa massacre 25 May 1995 Kallarawa, Trincomalee District 42 [36]
Aranthalawa Massacre 2 July 1987 Aranthalawa, Ampara District 35 [37]
Erakkandy massacre 2 July 1997 Erakkandy, Trincomalee District 34 [38][39]
Bogamuyaya massacre 23 January 1991 Bogamuyaya, Ampara District 29 [40]
Buttala bus bomb 16 January 2008 Buttala, Monaragala District 28 [41]
2008 Piliyandala bus bombing 25 April 2008 Piliyandala, Colombo 26 [42]
2008 Moratuwa bus bombing 6 June 2008 Katubedda, Moratuwa 22 [43]
Assassination of C. V. Gunaratne 8 June 2000 Ratmalana, Colombo District 22 [44][45]
Air Lanka Flight 512 3 May 1986 Bandaranaike International Airport, Gampaha District 21 [46]
Havelock Road bombing/Assassination of Ranjan Wijeratne 2 March 1991 Havelock Road, Colombo 19 [47]
1998 Temple of the Tooth attack 25 January 1998 Temple of the Tooth, Kandy 17 [21][48][49]
Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi 21 May 1991 Sriperumbudur, Chennai, in Tamil Nadu, India 15 [50][51]
1997 Colombo World Trade Centre bombing 15 October 1997 Colombo, Colombo District 15 [52]
2007 Sri Lankan bus bombs 6 January 2007 Hikkaduwa, Galle District 15 [53]
Akuressa suicide bombing 10 March 2009 Akuressa, Matara District 14 [54]
Assassination of Ranasinghe Premadasa 1 May 1993 Armour Street, Colombo 11 [55][56]
Fort railway station bombing 3 February 2008 Fort railway station, Colombo 11 [57]
Kokilai massacre 1 December 1984 Kokilai, Mullaitivu District 11
Gomarankadawala massacre 23 April 2006 Gomarankadawala, Trincomalee District 6 [58]
2009 suicide air raid on Colombo 20 February 2009 Colombo, Colombo District 2 LTTE pilots [59]

Notes[edit]

*.^ This is not the complete list, refer to the attacks by decades for a complete list of attacks

Attacks by decade[edit]

Below are the deadliest attacks from each decade.

1970s[edit]

Main article: List of attacks attributed to the LTTE, 1970s
1979
Date Attack Location Sinhalese Tamils Muslims Death toll Sources
S. A. Emmanuel of Chankanai, Thaadi Thangarajah of Kondavil, A. Krishnagol of Velvettiturai, T. Poopalasingham of Chunnakam and A. Sivarajah of Thondamannar are executed by the LTTE for providing evidence against them to the police. Jaffna District 5 5 [60]
PC Gnanasambandan, PC Sivanesan, Inspector Guruswamy, S. Swarnarajah and his wife are executed by the LTTE. Jaffna District 5 5 [60]

1980s[edit]

Main article: List of attacks attributed to the LTTE, 1980s
1985
Date Attack Location Sinhalese Tamils Muslims Death toll Sources
14 May Anuradhapura massacre: LTTE gunmen shoot dead 146 Sinhalese civilians and injure 85 others as they were praying at Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, a sacred Buddhist shrine in Anuradhapura. Anuradhapura, Anuradhapura District 146 146 [61]

1990s[edit]

Main article: List of attacks attributed to the LTTE, 1990s
1990
Date Attack Location Sinhalese Tamils Muslims Death toll Sources
11 June 1990 massacre of Sri Lankan Police officers: Over 600 unarmed police officers are shot dead by the LTTE in Police Stations across eastern Sri Lanka Eastern Province 600–774 [4][5][62]
3 August Kattankudy mosque massacre: 147 Muslim males were gunned down in two mosque during evening prayers by the LTTE. Kattankudy 147 147 [63]
11 August 1990 Eravur massacre: Dozens of Muslim villagers killed by the LTTE in Eravur. Eravur 116-173 116-173 [15][64][65]

2000s[edit]

Main article: List of attacks attributed to the LTTE, 2000s
2006
Date Attack Location Sinhalese Tamils Muslims Death toll Sources
16 October 2006 Digampathana bombing: A suicide bomber in a truck kills 103 Sri Lanka Navy sailors on buses going on, or returning from, leave at a transit point and wounds over 150 other sailors. Several civilians may also have died. Digampathana, North Central Province 103 103 [66]

Attacks by type[edit]

Suicide bombings[edit]

Main article: Suicide bombings in Sri Lanka

Assassinations[edit]

Main article: List of people assassinated by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Gunaratna, Rohan (3 November 2001). "Intelligence failures exposed by Tamil Tiger airport attack". Jane's Information Group. Archived from the original on 3 March 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
  2. ^ "Consular Information Sheet – Sri Lanka". Bureau of Consular Affairs. U.S. Department of State. 11 April 2007. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
  3. ^ Audrey Kurth Cronin; Huda Aden; Adam Frost & Benjamin Jones (6 February 2004). "CRS Report for Congress, Foreign Terrorist Organizations" (PDF). Bureau of Consular Affairs. The Library of Congress. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
  4. ^ a b "Recalling the saddest day in Lankan Police history". Lanka Newspapers. 2011. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  5. ^ a b "Killing of 774 policemen". Rivira. 2011. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  6. ^ Hashim, Ahmed (2013). When Counterinsurgency Wins: Sri Lanka's Defeat of the Tamil Tigers. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 104–105. ISBN 978-0-8122-4452-6.
  7. ^ "U.S. Department of State Sri Lanka Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1996". state.gov. US State Department. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  8. ^ Sivaram, S. D. (15 August 1996). "Mullaitivu: A Shattering Blow War Strategy" (PDF). Tamil Times. Vol. XV, no. 8. Sutton, U.K. pp. 11–12. ISSN 0266-4488. Retrieved 3 September 2011.
  9. ^ Situation Report, By Iqbal Athas
  10. ^ Borham, Maneshka. "Soldiers missing in action: Anguished families still knocking on doors". Sunday Observer. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  11. ^ Rubin, Barnett (1987). Cycles of Violence: Human Rights in Sri Lanka Since the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement. Human Rights Watch. ISBN 9780938579434. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
  12. ^ Xinhua, 147 Muslims Massacred by Tamil "Tigers" in Sri Lanka, Colombo, August 4, 1990
  13. ^ "Timeline of the Tamil conflict". BBC News. 4 September 2000. Retrieved 16 May 2007.
  14. ^ a b Letter sent by the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the Centre for Human Rights, Government of Sri Lanka, 9 August 1994
  15. ^ a b "Tamils Suspected in Massacre". India Abroad. Reuter. 17 August 1990. ProQuest 362647438. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  16. ^ Human Rights in Sri Lanka: An Update (PDF) (Report). Asia Watch. 12 March 1991. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  17. ^ "CHRONOLOGY-Major bombings in Sri Lanka blamed on Tamil Tigers". Reuters. 6 October 2008. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  18. ^ "1987: THE BUBBLE BURSTS, Chapter 6". UTHR(J). Retrieved 31 December 2006.
  19. ^ Luthra, Dumeetha (16 October 2006). "Analysis: Sri Lanka military setbacks". BBC. Retrieved 4 November 2006.
  20. ^ https://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=19928
  21. ^ a b "Eleven die in Sri Lankan temple suicide bomb". BBC. 25 January 1998. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
  22. ^ "Massacres In The Polonnaruwa District". UTHR(J). 2006.
  23. ^ "Welcome to UTHRJ: Report 7, Chapter 2". uthr.org.
  24. ^ "FROM BURNING HOUSES TO BURNING BODIES" (PDF). Amnesty.
  25. ^ Refugee Status Appeals Authority (PDF) (Report). 19 April 2006.
  26. ^ "Military 'killed Lanka aid staff'". BBC News. 30 August 2006. Retrieved 30 August 2006.
  27. ^ "Tamil Arrested in Sri Lanka Train Bombing". The New York Times. 4 September 1996.
  28. ^ "Colonel Kittu, A long forgotten ruthless leader, a Tamil movie wants to celebrate". 17 August 2016.
  29. ^ "LTTE genocide at Kent and Dollar Farms" (PDF). Daily News. 29 May 2009. Retrieved 21 April 2012.[permanent dead link]
  30. ^ "Sri Lanka Bomb Said to Kill Up to 60 (Published 1991)". The New York Times. 22 June 1991. Archived from the original on 29 June 2023.
  31. ^ Criminal Occurrence description at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 21 April 2012.
  32. ^ Kamalendra, Chris (19 September 1999). "Pre-dawn horror in Ampara: 54 killed as LTTE unleashed terror on villagers". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  33. ^ Latest Killing of a Sri Lanka Politician Fits a Familiar Pattern, The New York Times
  34. ^ Gamini Dissanayake, the last of men Archived 2015-06-26 at the Wayback Machine, Ceylon Today
  35. ^ "Year 1988 LTTE Atrocities". 28 May 2015. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015.
  36. ^ Kamalendran, Chris (4 October 1998). "Lighting a candle in the storm". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  37. ^ "LTTE's gun culture continues". The Sunday Observer. 3 June 2007. Archived from the original on 30 June 2007. Retrieved 6 June 2007.
  38. ^ "Tides Of Violence" (PDF).
  39. ^ "Sri lanka Briefly" (PDF).
  40. ^ "WORLD : Rebels Slaughter 29 in Sri Lanka". Los Angeles Times. 23 January 1991.
  41. ^ correspondent, Randeep Ramesh, South Asia (16 January 2008). "Tamil Tigers kill 28 with bus bomb". The Guardian.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  42. ^ "Sri Lanka fears more bombings as bus toll hits 26 | France 24". 21 May 2008. Archived from the original on 21 May 2008.
  43. ^ "Deadly blasts hit Sri Lanka buses". 6 June 2008.
  44. ^ Sri Lanka suicide bomber kills 22, The Guardian
  45. ^ Disciplined and respected political culture soon Archived 2015-06-28 at the Wayback Machine, Daily News
  46. ^ "1986: Bomb kills 21 in Sri Lanka". BBC. 3 May 1986. Retrieved 30 April 2008.
  47. ^ The Assassination Of Ranjan Wijeratne, Colombo Telegraph
  48. ^ "Religious ceremonies to commemorate the LTTE attack on Temple of tooth in Sri Lanka". Colombo Page. Sri Lanka. 25 January 2009. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
  49. ^ Nubin, Walter (2003). Sri Lanka: Current Issues and Historical Background. New York: Nova Publishers. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-59033-573-4.
  50. ^ Tamil Tiger 'regret' over Gandhi, BBC
  51. ^ 1991: Bomb kills India's former leader Rajiv Gandhi, BBC
  52. ^ British tourists wounded in Tamil Tiger bomb blast
  53. ^ "Gulfnews: Bus bomb kills 15 in southern Sri Lanka". 29 September 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
  54. ^ "Sri Lanka 'suicide bomb kills 14'". 10 March 2009.
  55. ^ Gargan, Edward A. (2 May 1993). "Suicide Bomber Kills President of Sri Lanka (Published 1993)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 April 2023.
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  57. ^ "Suicide Bomb Hits Sri Lankan Rail Station". CBS News. 24 September 2015. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  58. ^ Gunananda, A.T.M. (30 April 2006). "Gomarankadawala: "We need more security say villagers". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  59. ^ Hodge, Amanda (22 September 2009). "Kamikaze raid shows the Tamil Tigers have not been tamed". The Australian. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
  60. ^ a b Pathak, Saroj (January 2005). War Or Peace in Sri Lanka. Popular Prakshan. ISBN 978-81-7991-199-0.
  61. ^ "Timeline of the Tamil conflict". BBC News. 4 September 2000. Retrieved 15 December 2007.
  62. ^ "Sri Lanka Human Rights Practices, 1995". US State Department. US State Department. March 1996. Archived from the original on 20 March 2005.
  63. ^ Xinhua, 147 Muslims Massacred by Tamil "Tigers" in Sri Lanka, Colombo, August 3, 1990
  64. ^ Ahamath, Anosh (14 August 1990). "'Give Arms or Cyanide': Muslims beg for protection after massacre in Sri Lanka". The Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
  65. ^ "Rebels Reported to Kill 119 in Sri Lanka". The New York Times. Associated Press. 13 August 1990. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
  66. ^ USA Today: Fighter jets pound suspected rebel camp after suicide bombing kills 95 sailors, October 17, 2006
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